By Andy Walter

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Delaware’s road to redemption started at 7 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

That’s when coach Martin Ingelsby — his men’s basketball team mired in a three-game losing streak — got his players together for a back-to-defense practice.

But along with diving on loose balls and working on taking charges, he also wanted his players to enjoy playing the game again.

“In my opinion, this can’t get much worse,” sophomore guard Jameer Nelson, Jr. joked about the Blue Hens’ struggles. “Coming into practice last week we were playing hard, we were competing. It was fun. And after beating up each other, we were ready to beat somebody else up.”

Whatever it was, fifth-seeded Delaware then went out and saved its season, at least for one day, by dispatching No. 4 Drexel, 66-56, in the CAA Tournament quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon.

In ending their three-game skid, the Blue Hens (20-12) earned another game in the D.C. Entertainment and Sports Arena, where they will take on top-seeded Towson (25-7) on Monday at 6 p.m. in the CAA semifinals.

After picking up their first win since Feb. 19, Delaware at least looked a little bit more like the team that was picked to win the league title in the preseason.

“It was a new season for us and that’s what I kept coming back to,” said UD coach Martin Ingelsby. “It’s a new season and getting back to having fun playing basketball.

“We couldn’t control anything in the past, we had to focus on what was in front of us. ... I’m really proud of how they responded today. These guys were ready to go. You saw it in shoot-around, you saw in stretching today.

“I just think it was our turn — it was our time — to be able to get one of these.”

Delaware only trailed after giving up a pair of foul shots to start the game. A driving layup by senior guard Ryan Allen (nine points) just before the buzzer gave the Hens a 27-16 advantage at halftime.

The Dragons (15-14) hit only 7-of-27 shots from the floor in the opening 20 minutes.

But Drexel, led by star guard Cam Wynter, never goes away quietly against Delaware.

After the Hens went up by as much as 15 in the second half, a 10-0 run got the Dragons back in the game.

Three times after that, Drexel closed within just three. At one point, Wynter (28 points) had tallied 26 of his team’s 44 points.

Finally, though, Delaware asserted itself again in the final five minutes.

A three-pointer from senior guard Kevin Anderson (nine points, five assists) was followed by back-to-back three-point plays from freshman Jyare Davis.

When Davis drove the baseline for the first of those baskets, he also picked up the fifth foul on the Dragons’ 6-foot-10 Amari Williams, the CAA Defensive Player of the Year.

Davis’ second three-point play, with 2:18 left, gave the Hens a 60-48 cushion. The CAA Rookie of the Year finished with team highs of 17 points and 10 rebounds.

“I think right now we have a good togetherness,” said Davis, who made his first college start. “We had to make sure to keep a level head and make sure to stick together. It’s going to be a game of runs.”

Delaware could have made things easier for itself down the stretch. The Hens made just 4-of-10 foul shots in the last 1:46, twice missing the front end of one-and-ones.

It was enough to get them another game in the tournament, though.
Only a week ago, Towson embarrassed Delaware, 69-57, in the completion of a contest that the Hens started with a nine-point lead and just 18 minutes remaining.

Ingelsby, whose team has lost twice to the Tigers this winter, was asked about the idea of it being difficult to beat a team three times in the same season. He said, in high school, he lost a championship game to a team his school had already beaten twice.

“So I always think there’s some truth to that,” said Ingelsby. “I know our guys will be ready to go. We left Baltimore with a bad taste in our mouth (last Monday) just with how we competed.

“We’ll regroup and I know our guys will be ready to roll.”

Free throws

Sophomore Andrew Carr scored 13 points with Nelson adding 11. ... Delaware is in the CAA semis for the third time in four seasons. ... The Hens are 7-10 in CAA quarterfinal games all-time. ... Delaware and Drexel were playing in a conference tourney for the first time since 2008. The Hens have now won seven straight tournament games over the Dragons. ... This is only the ninth time in program history that Delaware has won 20 games in a season. ... Polytech High grad Juwan Gray, a senior for Towson, finished with six points and six rebounds in the Tigers’ 68-61 win over Northeastern on Sunday.

Follow Andy Walter on Twitter at @DSNSports.